There's Something In The Air
by Syd and Z
Summary: It's 2020 and Jason Scott is mentoring a new team of rangers. After defeating one enemy, Jason and the recruits discover that former rangers are disappearing without warning. What sort of new evil could be attacking them, and what is the connection to one of Jason's long time friends? AU Past DT.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Hello friendlies! It's been ages since we've posted anything, and we're so sorry about that. We've both moved multiple times in the past few years, and with school, and a multitude of other backlogs, we haven't found time to write until now. This is a new story, obviously. It's AU beyond the end of DT, and you will see appearances from former rangers. We haven't forgotten about our other stories, so fear not we will get back to those in due time. We've also updates our profile with some fancy new stuff, so check that little link out!) Don't forget to read and review, we love commentary and feedback! Kisses from your dearest misses _~ Syd & Z._

* * *

The breeze blows softly as Jason Scott glances out from his porch, towards the pool and the back of the house where seven twenty-something's alternate between lounging around, and swimming. He smiles slightly as the laugh of one girl carries across the lawn towards him. The laugh is familiar, and he can't help a feeling of sadness that washes over him.

_Twenty-one years._ He muses to himself as he makes his way up the side path and into the main house. _Twenty-one years since I last saw my best friend._ Letting himself into the house, he quickly makes his way down a side staircase and into the basement. The door slides closed behind him, and as he fiddles with the light switch on the wall, another door slides open, revealing a hidden staircase leading further down under the house.

Closing his eyes with an audible sigh, opening his eyes again, Jason walks down the stairs and through the entryway and into a larger room, complete with massive computers and other forms of technology lying around. Relaxing into the chair in front of the computers, he leans back slightly, closing his eyes once again.

* * *

_The loud pounding at the front door startles Jason out of a dead sleep. Rolling over in bed, he sees that it's nearly four am. The body next to him stirs._

"_Who'd be knocking at this time of night?" The woman mumbles sleepily, as she rolls over to glance at him. Sitting up and tossing back the covers, Jason shrugs as he grabs his shirt off the floor and yanks it on over his head._

"_No idea, stay here Trini." Reaching into the nightstand, he grabs his gun and clicks the safety off before leaving the room. He creeps down the stairs quietly, staying light on his feet as the knocking increases in speed and sound. Reaching the main floor, he hears a loud sob before the person calls out._

"_Damnit Jason, drop the gun and open the door!" Reacting quickly, he slides the gun onto the side table and unlocks the front door to see Kim standing on the other side, her nearly three-year-old daughter asleep in the carrier at her feet._

"_Jesus Kim, it's you." He replies, relief filling his tone as he reaches down and lifts the small carrier with ease. "Come on." Not needing to be told twice, Kim ducks inside as Trini descends the stairs._

"_Kim?" She asks, stepping towards the shorter woman._ _Kimberly blinked, more tears cascading down her cheeks as Trini approached her._

"_I'm so sorry…." She choked out. "I know its late…and….I…." her voice broke off as a sob broke free, "I didn't know where else to go."_

"_Oh, Kim," Trini murmured softly, quickly drawing her long time friend into a tight hug. "It's okay," she said, rubbing soothing circles into Kimberly's back as her crying friend's tears soaked her shoulder. Reaching over, Jason lightly rested his hand on Kim's shoulder._

"_Do you want me to take Lauren upstairs so she can sleep?" He asked her softly. Kim shakes her head in response; pulling away from Trini she rubbed her eyes._

"_No.. No keep her down here please." Carefully she made her way over to the small loveseat in the living room, and folded herself into it. "I don't know how much time we have." With a glance, Jason, with Lauren's carrier still in hand, moved into the living room, while Trini headed into the kitchen to grab some glasses for water._

"_What do you mean, you don't know how much time you have?" Jason asked, casting a glance down at his sleeping goddaughter, brows furrowing in concern. Taking a shaky breath, Kim dragged her hands across her face._

"_Alsaia's declared war on Elusia. They found out that Lauren isn't a pure descendant of mine, and now they're challenging my right to the throne…" Choking back a sob, Kim pinched her eyes closed. "That was a few weeks ago. Earlier tonight, they descended on the palace, with the intent to kill both Lauren and I." An eerie quiet filled the room for a moment before Trini walked back in and passed a glass to Kim before settling down next to Jason._

"_What do you need us to do?" He asked quietly. Setting her glass down on the table next to her, Kim leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees._

"_There are a few families that have moved from Elusia to Earth that I've been in contact with since Lauren was born. There's one family in particular that's agreed to take her and keep her safe until she becomes of age." Pausing a moment, she takes a breath. "But, we need to ensure safe passage for her future guards and her Cairystad as well."_

"_Lauren can stay with us." Trini offered. "We're practically family already." Biting her lip and trying not to cry further, Kim shakes her head in reply._

"_I can't risk it. They already know that I have connections here on Earth, and they will stop at nothing to find Lauren and kill her."_

* * *

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Jason pulls open a few windows on the computer and quickly looses himself in his work. A few weeks had passed since his rangers defeated The Baron and his minions, giving them all a necessary reprieve from fighting and training, allowing the young group to relax and unwind.

It had also given Jason the opportunity to go back to his regular job as a Captain for the Fort Bragg Police Department. He'd requested some time away from the precinct, to work from home, thereby helping the rangers. He spends nearly an hour hidden away, before a ping alerts him to a new email arriving in his personal account. Jason switched over to the window connected to his email client and saw a lone message sitting there, waiting for him. His brows furrowed in confusion as he looked at the subject line: URGENT, followed by a random sequence of letters, nonsensical gibberish. He was ready to dismiss it as some sort of spam mail, and moved to quickly delete it. As he moved the mouse over to the delete icon, something stopped him. Jason couldn't quite place his finger on it, but something told him not to quickly trash the email. He stared at it, his finger hovering over the button on his mouth for a long moment before he decided to take the chance.

"This had better not be a virus," he muttered to himself as he moved his mouse to click "read". The moment he opened the email, the screen flashed with bright lights, with lines of code scrolling past the screen. "What is this," he thought out loud, "opening credits to The Matrix?" He worried that maybe he had unleashed some virus, until he suddenly realized that hidden within the scrolling sequences of seemingly random words, numbers, and symbols, there were words.

RANGER

EARTH

ELUSIA

ALSAIA

The last two words made Jason's heart stop in shock. Could it be this was a message from Kimberly? Some long awaited news after over two decades of silence?

At the end of the scrolling code, a dialog box with two questions and blank fields appeared, as if asking for a username and password. One asked for his name, the other, cryptically asked, "when it all began" Jason blinked a few times, trying to comprehend what this was all about. He cautiously entered his name: Jason Lee Scott, in the first field, then peered at the second. When what all began? Could Kimberly be testing him to be sure it was really him? If so, it had to be a date that held significance solely to the two of them.

On a whim, Jason decided to punch in the day he and Kimberly met: August 28, 1980.

He expected to see the actual message as soon as he entered the date into the second empty field, but was disheartened to see the dialog box flash red for a moment before appearing as it had originally, except the second field empty and the words "Access failed. Message will erase after: 2 more failed attempts" beneath it. "Erase?" Jason thought out loud, astonished, still surprised the date didn't work, and concerned about having a limit of his tries to access the message. He sighed and tried again, entering the fateful day when he was a teenager - the day he, Kimberly, and their friends met Zordon and Alpha, and became the Power Rangers. As he entered the date: August 28, 1993, he nearly chuckled as it dawned on him that he had never realized they had become rangers exactly 13 years after meeting.

Again, Jason hoped this was what was expected, and again, the box flashed red. "Access failed. Message will erase after: 1 more failed attempt"

"Shit…" Jason cursed under his breath. What was this damn thing looking for? Again, he stared at the words that had scrolled passed his screen, and thought of the two words that caught his attention the most. With the utmost trepidation, Jason entered the only remaining date he could possibly think of, the date Kimberly showed up at his doorstep with her little girl, and shared her worries with himself and Trini: October first 1998.

Jason winced, afraid he'd be notified that no, he was wrong yet again and the message would disappear before he had a chance to know of it's contents. Mere seconds felt like hours as he waited for the box to acknowledge his input. He hoped for the best, and prepared for the worst.

The box did not flash red, instead, the fields he had typed in disappeared, the dialog box taking on a green color as the word "Access Granted" flashed on the screen. The dialog box disappeared, as did the lines of code that had unleashed it. In its place, was a lone video file. Slowly moving the mouse over, Jason clicked on the video, and pressed play. A man with bright green hair, and a silver jewel in the center of his forehead appeared on the screen.

"Hi Jason, you don't know me, but we have a few friends in common. My name is Trip, and I'm ranger from the future." Jason blinked slightly, taken aback. It had been a long while since he had heard anything from Wes or Eric, and he vaguely remembered them having been apart of a team consisting of rangers from the future. Trip held his hands up and gave him a slight smile.

"This is probably highly unexpected, and I bet you're wondering why I'm reaching out to you, especially using some words that have most likely set warning bells off in your head." Taking a slow breath, Trip continued. "I have the ability to see the past and future, it's actually a heredity gift passed along through my family on our home planet. But you don't need that explanation right now. What you need to know is that there's something strange happening on earth. It took me a while to pinpoint the signature of things, but it looks like someone is kidnapping rangers. Their connection to the morphing grid is there one minute, and suddenly gone the next. You're the only active team currently, and I thought maybe you could investigate further into it…" Trip paused for a moment, glancing around, and Jason leaned over to grab a bottle of water from the mini-fridge next to the computers.

"It gets worse though. These rangers that are disappearing, aren't just any rangers. They're rangers who have connections to you and your former team in general. It looks like whoever this is, has a plan that they're trying to execute. I shouldn't speculate anything, but things aren't stable currently on Elusia in your time. They haven't been since Kimberly put Lauren into hiding, and then encased herself in crystal. But it's getting progressively worse. The Alsaian's have increased their search for both Kimberly and Lauren, and I have a feeling that Alaric Kraven, who's the current Leader of Alsaia, is the one behind taking the rangers to draw out _anyone _who might have a connection to either of them."

The bottle of water Jason had just pulled out of the fridge slipped out from between his fingers, the plastic making a light crinkling thunk as it hit the floor. He sat there, eyes wide and barely breathing.

He had heard some former rangers had seemingly vanished into thin air. But aside from his own nagging suspicious feelings, he couldn't actually come up with concrete proof that it was actually anything nefarious, let alone having to do with past occupation as rangers. He first heard of Kelsey Winslow, the yellow ranger of the Lightspeed team, suddenly not being heard from through Carter Greyson, the Lightspeed red ranger whom Jason had maintained fairly frequent contact with since the two of them and their fellow red rangers from time long ago joined together to battle the remnants of the machine empire; not to mention Carter and his wife, Dr. Dana Mitchell-Greyson, the former Lightspeed pink ranger lived in the center of Fort Bragg and Jason had found himself relying on Dana's medical training quite a bit in the past year if and his rangers received any serious injuries in battle. Carter had initially mentioned it in passing as he and Jason caught up with drinks just a couple of weeks ago. No one had heard from Kelsey in quite some time, but she was prone to bouts of wanderlust on occasion, therefore they hadn't become too concerned just yet.

The next ranger he'd heard of disappearing, had been a former student of Tommy's, named Conner McKnight. He and his fiancée had just set out on vacation in Europe, when Conner had just mysteriously vanished while out on an excursion in Italy. His fiancée Kira, also a former ranger, had called Tommy in a panic, and when Jason had Skyped with his 'brother' a few weeks prior, he'd mentioned it in passing. Tommy had downplayed things, saying that Conner could be very flighty at times, but it was just as uncharacteristic as Kelsey's disappearance.

Jason had grown increasingly uneasy when he then heard of his two friends and former ranger companions when he had wielded the powers of the Gold Ranger, Adam Park and Rocky DeSantos, had disappeared. The two of them, along with their wives, fellow former rangers Tanya Park and Aisha Cambpell-Desantos, had been doing relief work in Africa for the past few months. Much like with Tommy, Jason kept in contact with the four of them through the occasional Skype session, sharing updates as the organization they had joined helped rebuild schools and hospitals that had become dilapidated after an earthquake.

It was Tanya's tear stained and fear stricken face that informed Jason of Rocky and Adam's disappearance. Tanya shared that the two had been part of a group of other volunteers doing a supply run into the city. After nightfall came, the others in the organization grew worried that they had not returned nor sent word of any complication delaying them. After a search, the jeep the group had driven off in was located a few miles outside of the city. The jeep had the purchased supplies in the back... And the bodies the volunteers that had ridden along with Adam and Rocky littered on the ground near it.

Tanya shared that there had been problems with violent militias in the area, and their hosts had told her and Aisha that their husbands may have been taken by one once they realized the two were American, with the plans of using them as hostages to ransom the US government for. The thought of the two possibly not being dead, did little to comfort the two former yellow rangers, or Jason as he heard the story, since who could tell what they could've been going through or how much longer they would be alive.

But it was the frightened phone call a few days earlier that had given Jason the sense that something was truly amiss. Dana Greyson had called in a panic at 6am, saying that Carter hadn't come home from work the night before. They had been on opposite shifts for a week, and that morning was supposed to be the start of their three-day weekend off together. A search had discovered Carter's truck abandoned on a narrow side road.

It was all too much of a coincidence, five people who, at one point in their lives had been Power Rangers, vanish out of thin air with no evidence as to who could've taken them, and no sort of ransom demands if they had in fact been kidnapped. Jason began to suspect that this was all happening because of their lives as rangers. It was this fear that prompted Jason to suggest Dana take a leave of absence from her position at the hospital, take hers and Carter's two children and go back to her hometown Mariner Bay.

The Aquabase, the Lightspeed rangers home and base of operations, was still intact, and Jason figured if there was something out there attacking rangers, he wasn't about to let one more ranger, not to mention a fellow ranger, be the next victim. It had taken some convincing, as Dana wasn't prepared to leave Fort Bragg with absolutely no idea as to her husband's whereabouts, or if he was even alive, but Jason managed to help her remember she had to think of hers and Carter's children and how to keep herself safe for their sake. Jason was there the day Dana's father, Captain William Mitchell, and her brother, Ryan, arrived to help take her and the children back to Mariner Bay. With how fearful and distraught Dana was, even she didn't think she could handle the long drive back to her hometown. As Ryan and Captain Mitchell helped load of the car, Jason and Dana had said their goodbyes, and Jason promised he'd contact her the moment there was any news to Carter's whereabouts. It nearly broke his heart when Dana demanded he contacted her, even if the news was bad. Reluctantly, he had agreed to contact her no matter what the news might be.

Taking a few moments to compose himself and clean up the mess his bottle of water had made on the floor, Jason replayed the last portion of Trip's message.

"I think it goes without saying that you need to be careful, since you're potentially a target. But you also need to find the former rangers and rescue them. I can only imagine that whatever Alaric Kraven has planned, is nothing good." A noise in the background of the video startled Trip, causing him to glance around. "I have to go. I'm probably going to get in a pile of trouble for reaching out to you, but you needed to know. Good luck Jason, and keep the princess safe." Seconds later, the screen went black. With a sigh, Jason leaned back in his chair, rubbing his hands over his eyes.

"Get one problem solved just in time for another one to appear." He grumbled as he reached for his keyboard and pulled open a blank document. It only took him a few minutes to compile a list of former rangers that he'd need to contact very soon. As he looked over his list, his gaze stayed on the one name that had been the top of the list. The name that had been the first to spring to mind as he thought of fellow former rangers, Tommy. Rubbing his chin, Jason reached over for his phone and punched in the number for his best friend. As the phone rang, a part of Jason hoped the call went straight to voicemail, as he wasn't quite sure what he would say to his friend.

* * *

"You cheated!" Kylie Gregory accused, sputtering out water that had gone up her nose the moment she had fallen off her brother Declan's shoulders in the pool. She pushed her wet hair back and out of her face.

"Moi? Cheat? Never," Tristan Lifford laughed, as he and Lauren Ashbury high fived each other. The four young adults had been engaging in a game of chicken - Lauren perched on Tristan's shoulders, and Kylie on Declan's. The four of them laughed good naturedly as they "fought", the two teams evenly matched until Tristan hooked one of his legs around Declan's calf, throwing off his balance resulting in the two Gregory siblings tumbling backwards in the pool.

"I think I'd have to agree with Kylie, you guys totally cheated!" Clara Reid giggled from her spot on the side of the pool, her legs dangling in the water. Tristan laughed loudly, and Lauren stuck her tongue out at her friend.

"Fine then, if we cheated, lets have a rematch, best two out of three!" Lauren smiled as she tugged on Tristan's hair lightly.

"Hey, how about someone else gets a turn to battle the champions?" Ryota 'Ryo' Kiyoshi commented as he stood up straight from lounging in the pool, his head and shoulders balanced on the corner near the pool steps as his body floated in front of him. He swam the short distance towards Clara and placed a hand on her knee. "Whaddya say, Clara," he grinned, "how about you hop on my big strong shoulders and we take them on?" He asked with an exaggerated wiggle of his eyebrows. Clara's expression instantly changed from jovial and giggling, to practically scowling as she regarded him.

"No thanks," came her reply, as she not so gently swatted his hand off of her, and rose to her feet to move away from him. Ryo threw his head back and gave out a hearty laugh.

"Aw darn, and I was so looking forward to carrying your dead weight around," he replied, splashing water at her feet.

"Isn't carrying "dead weight around" just a typical night out on the town for you and one of your bimbos?" Clara snarkily replied, with an arched eyebrow and a smirk to match.

"Now, now ladies, you're both pretty… Although Clara is much prettier." Came the comment from Mikaili Davis as he approached the young woman. "How about we take them on, cousins versus the terrible twosome?" He gave her a grin before jumping into the pool himself.

"If I must," Clara said with an exaggerated sigh as she sat back down at the edge of the pool and slipped in.

"Hey Davis, are you sure that's a good idea?" Ryo asked, "I mean, I'm genuinely concerned you might sink and drown with Clara's big butt on your shoulders," he laughed, receiving a glare from the two cousins in response. Davis made a move towards him, only to be stopped by Clara raising a delicate hand to cease his actions before turning towards Ryo, a tight smile on her face.

"What was that you said about my butt?" She innocently asked. He smirked and opened his mouth to reply, only to get the wind partially knocked out of him as Clara jabbed the heel of her hand into his stomach. Ryo leaned against the wall of the pool to catch his breath from the impact.

"Ow," was all he managed to choke out.

"Now then," Clara said, turning back to her cousin with a grin. "Shall we?" With a grin, Davis sunk down and Clara quickly balanced herself on his shoulders. As they got into place, Lauren was still laughing over the slight incident with Ryo.

"Remind me to never piss you off Clara." She smiled as she adjusted herself slightly on Tristan's shoulders. "Try not to drop me." She commented to Tristan, patting his cheek lightly with a laugh.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Tristan replied, grinning up at her.

"Alright, let's do this," Davis commented once Clara was safely on his shoulders, and comfortable.

"You two are going down!" Lauren laughed as Tristan moved towards Davis and Clara. Reaching over, Lauren shoved at Clara's shoulder, while Tristan kicked at Davis' hip. Davis stumbled back slightly, gripping Clara's knees tightly as she wobbled above him.

"Careful!" She laughed.

"Come on team cousins, take 'em out!" Kylie cheered on with a laugh from the side of the pool. Grinning, Declan swam in behind where Tristan was standing with Lauren and waved slightly to Davis, before ducking under the water and tucking himself behind Tristan's legs.

"Don't worry, we will!" Davis laughed, as he grabbed Lauren's ankles and shoved backwards. Lauren yelped as her center of gravity shifted back, and Tristan stumbled backwards, only to encounter Declan's body under him.

"Shit!" Tristan laughed as he fell backwards into the water, taking Lauren with him.

"Woohoo! Yeah!" Clara laughed as Lauren and Tristan fumbled about under water; Lauren's attempts at untangling her limbs from around Tristan made difficult by Tristan trying to regain his footing. After a moment, the two were finally able to separate and stand up in the pool.

"Hey, that was fighting dirty!" Lauren declared, giving Clara, Davis and Declan a playful glare.

"Hey, what can I say," Davis smirked as he helped Clara climb off his shoulders, "one good cheat deserves another."

"There should be a rule about boyfriends helping each other." Tristan laughed as he shoved Declan's shoulder. "Good one though man, wish I'd thought of it."

"Someone has to have brains around here." Declan grinned with a small blush.

"And here I thought that was me," Kylie teased as her brother moved over to stand by her, Clara and Davis.

"Well, woman, we shared a womb," Declan replied with a shrug, "I guess some of your brains decided to jump ship to me back then," he chuckled. The others laughed.

"Hey, Ryo," Tristan called out to their friend. "You still breathing over there? Or do we need to call 911?"

"Very funny," Ryo replied as he rolled his eyes. "As if Clara could cause that much damage."

"I didn't?" Clara asked, a small pout forming on her lips. "I'd be happy to try again," she added brightly.

"Come on, Clara, you don't want to kill him," Davis laughed, putting an arm around his cousin's shoulders.

"Kill? No. Cause bodily harm? Most likely." She replied nudging her hip with his. From beside them, Declan laughed.

"Alright, there will be no bodily harm today, or in the near future. We're relaxing and having fun… And if Ryo's being a dick, maybe we'll drown him. Or forget to take him out for pizza tonight." Reaching over, he squeezed Clara's shoulder.

"Works for me," Clara grinned.

"Hey, I'm standing right here you know," Ryo protested.

"Unfortunately," Clara commented without missing a beat.

"Alright, alright," Kylie said, rolling her eyes. If left alone, Ryo and Clara's little back and forth sessions could last for ages.

"Yeah, how about you two give it a rest and stick to neutral corners," Lauren suggested with a laugh.

"Speaking of corners, how about some volleyball in the pool?" Tristan commented as he swam over to the side of the pool and pushed himself out. "Whose in? Lauren I'll even let you pick me for your team first." He teased. Kylie glanced over at Tristan.

"How is volleyball even remotely related to corners?" She asked, and Lauren rolled her eyes as she lifted herself out of the pool where Tristan was standing.

"It's Tristan, do you need an explanation? And I think I'll pass on volleyball right now, I want to tan for a bit." Lauren replied poking Tristan in the side gently.

"I'll pass too, I think I need to check on the kiln," Clara replied as she climbed out of the pool and grabbed her cover from where she had left it on one of the lounge chairs.

"Oh come on," Tristan groaned. "If you both leave, the teams won't be even."

"Well, wouldn't that still be the case if we stayed?" Lauren pointed out.

"I'm out too," Ryo commented as he made his way towards the pool ladder. "Davis, man, I think your cousin bruised me," he complained.

"Only your ego." Clara muttered as she walked away. Lauren glanced over at Tristan and patted his shoulder gently.

"There, now your teams are even. You, Davis, Declan and Kylie can play."

"Oh fine," Tristan sighed dramatically. He reached over and wrapped an arm around Lauren's waist and pulled her closer to him. "Though I'm pretty sure we would've made a kickass team," he added with a smile.

"You're such a dork." She laughed in response, rolling her eyes.

"Maybe, but that's what you adore about me," he grinned.

"Sure, keep telling yourself that," Lauren snorted as she moved out of his embrace and walked over to the row of lounge chairs by the pool.

* * *

The remainder of the day passed in a blur for the group. After finishing their poolside escapades, and other activities, they'd gone out to dinner as a group, and for ice cream afterwards. Jason had refrained from telling the others about the new danger and let them relax and enjoy themselves for the rest of the day, The five rangers; Lauren, Tristan, Declan, Davis, and Ryo, had been a strong and resilient team and worked very hard in defeating The Baron, while Kylie and Clara had diligently helped in whatever ways they could in their roles as "ranger support". All of them deserved the rest and celebration that came with their victory, even if it was sadly going to be short lived.

"Ughhhhh, why didn't anyone stop me from eating that fourth ice cream cone?" Declan complained as he and the others walked into the house close to midnight. He groaned and rubbed his aching stomach.

"We did try to stop you," Kylie pointed out, "Davis even tried playing keep away with your wallet. But you were literally unstoppable."

"Well, sure, it's my fault when you throw logic in my face," Declan replied as the group entered the living room to find Jason waiting for them in the couch.

"Hey," Lauren greeted, surprised. "What are you doing still up?" He motioned for them to join him in the living room.

"Waiting for you guys to get back actually, I have a couple of things to tell you." The group filed into the room, Lauren and Tristan sitting on the love seat, Kylie, Declan, Davis and Clara on the long couch, and Ryo on the floor beside the love seat.

"What's going on?" Tristan asked. Jason sighed and clasped his hands in front of him as he tried to find the right words to break the news to them all. Even though he had had all day to think of how to tell them, it hadn't helped.

"I have some bad news," he finally stated.

"Is it The Baron?" Declan asked after a moment. "Is he back?" Jason shook his head in response.

"No, thankfully it isn't him." Sighing, he ran his hands over his face. "I got a video from a former ranger today, who told me that other rangers have been disappearing all across the world. He seems to think that it's someone new, and not connected to The Baron. I'm not sure why he's taking former rangers, but I needed to tell you guys so that you're aware of everything." The room was silent as the seven young adults took in what Jason had shared.

"What do you mean disappearing?" Clara asked after a long moment, stunned.

"What, do you need a dictionary? Disappearing, as in gone, as in there one minute and not there the next," Ryo replied with a roll of his eyes. Lauren lightly kicked his side with the toe of her shoe, not hard enough to actually hurt, but enough to tell him to cool it. "Sorry," he muttered.

"Who's been taken?" Davis asked, getting back on point, "are your friends okay?" He continued. The group knew of Jason's past as a ranger, or as much as he felt they should know.

"As far as I know...two of my former fellow rangers, and Carter," Jason replied with a sigh.

"How are Dana and the kids doing?" Kylie asked softly. She and Dana had grown close when the former ranger had stopped in to help patch up the rangers the first time. Jason shrugged his shoulders in response.

"All things considered Dana's okay. She and the kids are staying with her brother and father in Mariner Bay until things get figured out and settled. As for other friends, I'm not sure what's going on. I've reached out to a few, and one should be on his way here later tomorrow."

"Do we have any ideas who could be doing this?" Lauren asked. Jason paused a moment, unsure how to answer.

"No," he finally said. He figured that was technically the truth. Even with what Trip had said involving Elusia, there was still no indication as to who could be taking the former rangers. Jason wasn't prepared to open that line of discussion at that point, given that Lauren had been kept in the dark about whom she really was, and where she and her friends were really from. "But we will find them." Standing slowly, he made his way to the hallway. "You should get some sleep, since there's nothing we can do tonight. I'll see you all in the morning." The soft footsteps echoed down the hall, and out the backdoor. The group remained silent for a short time before Davis stood.

"Jason's right. We're not going to be able to accomplish anything tonight, so we should get some sleep." Declan stood and moved to stand next to Davis.

"You're right. Night guys." The couple turned and exited from the room, chatting softly. Kylie stood a moment later and with a wave, departed as well.

"Alright, I'm going to go head off to my room," Lauren commented as she rose to her feet. Tristan stood up as well and reached down to take her hand in his.

"Feel up for some company?" He softly asked. Lauren looked at him and gave him a small apologetic smile.

"Not tonight, I'm really tired," she replied. Tristan released her hand and gave a quick nod.

"Alright," he stated as Lauren left the room. Clara followed out a moment later with a parting smile. Ryo and Tristan sat in silence for a few minutes before Ryo pushed himself up.

"Well, I'm off too man. Have a good one."

"Yeah, you too," Tristan replied before he too headed off to his own room.

* * *

The sun was barely up the next morning when Jason left his small house behind the mansion where the Rangers lived. Walking up the path, he could see a head bobbing in and out of the water, swimming laps. Casually, he walked over and waited until the head surfaced at his end of the pool.

"Morning Lauren." He smiled as she pulled her goggles off and tossed them onto the deck.

"Morning Jason." Came her reply as she effortlessly lifted herself out of the pool, and accepted the towel that Jason handed to her.

"Couldn't sleep I take it?" Came his question as she wrapped the towel around her body. Lauren shook her head in response.

"No, I got maybe an hour or two before I was wide awake again." Jason squeezed her shoulder as she slipped her sandals on and they started back towards the house.

"Maybe when everything calms back down, you and Dana can sit down and talk about your insomnia." He offered. Lauren gave a non-committal shrug in reply.

"Yeah sure. I don't know if it'll make a difference, but I guess it can't get any worse." The remainder of the walk was silent. Jason pushed open the sliding door and motioned for Lauren to go first. "I think I'm gonna take a shower then maybe catch a few more hours of sleep, if that's okay with you." She commented.

"Yeah, of course," Jason nodded. Lauren gave him a small parting smile before she wandered deeper into the house and headed towards one of the upstairs bathrooms. Jason closed the sliding door and headed to the kitchen to make some coffee. After Jason had left the others the previous night, he had gone back to his house and cleared space in one of the extra rooms in preparation for his longtime friend and former ranger arriving. Jason had been surprised to realize that Tommy had noticed what was going on already, and much like with Jason in regards to Carter's disappearance, his suspicions had been perked when he himself heard that Adam and Rocky were missing so soon after Conner's disappearance.

As it had turned out Tommy had been trying to put the pieces together from Reefside, with what resources he still had from his days leading his team of rangers and those of his team that still remained safe, but had come up with nothing. He was both relieved and grateful to hear from Jason the previous day. Relieved that Jason hadn't gone missing as well, and grateful to hear that someone else had been alerted to what was going on, someone who had active rangers on his side to fight whatever was coming on the horizon. Jason wasn't surprised Tommy knew of his rangers. Though Jason had never come out and told him "hey guess what, I'm with the new rangers on the block," Tommy was connected enough to know what had gone on and Fort Bragg, and connected the dots himself: ranger activity going on in the same town Jason lived, Jason like himself being a past ranger, of course Jason would be involved. Not to mention, Jason figured, some dot connecting might have been helped along with Tommy being in at the very least occasional contact with Carter.

Jason was careful with what he shared with Tommy in their conversation. He couldn't tell how exactly this new enemy was locating and nabbing former rangers, but it didn't hurt to be careful when speaking on an open line. He simply told him that something was going on, past rangers were in danger, and Jason wanted him to come out to Fort Bragg. Tommy was hesitant at first, not necessarily overly enthused about leaving his friend Hayley, and his former students/teammates, but Jason managed to convince him that it would be for the best - if for nothing else than for the two to work together and find their friends and put a stop to whatever was causing all of this.

Jason pulled himself away from his thoughts long enough to take out a coffee cup from one of the cupboards and pour himself some coffee.

"Ooo, I thought I smelled coffee brewing," came a voice. He looked up to see Clara walking into the kitchen still in her pajamas, her fuzzy slippers shuffling on the linoleum floor. Jason shook his head and slid the filled cup towards her and took out another cup for himself.

"Don't any of you people sleep in?" Jason questioned as he poured another cup of coffee. Clara shrugged as she wrapped her hands around the cup Jason had given her and took a sip.

"I put some pieces to dry in the kiln last night, wanted to make sure they hadn't overcooked or anything," she replied. "Why are you up so early?" She asked. Jason took a sip of his coffee before responding.

"Didn't sleep well and wanted to try and get started on things for today." Clara gave a thoughtful nod and took another sip of her coffee. She was quiet for a moment before speaking.

"You're really worried about whatever this new thing is, aren't you?" She asked. Jason sighed and set his coffee down.

"I'm worried about my friends," he replied, "both those who are already missing, and..." he let his voice trail off, not sure if he was prepared to jinx the possibility of more people being taken. It took him a moment to collect his thoughts. "But I'm also worried that this person is more dangerous than we think." Clara nodded after a moment.

"I can understand that. Is there anything I can do to help right now?" Jason shook his head and gave her a small smile.

"I appreciate it, but no. Get done what you need to, and if you wouldn't mind making sure everyone's awake by 11 so we can get working on things."

Yeah sure, no problem," Clara replied.

"Thanks," Jason said as he picked up his coffee cup and left the room.

* * *

After returning to her room and showering, Lauren had braided her hair and climbed back into bed for a few hours. She'd had insomnia since she was a teenager and it had only gotten worse since her parents died eight years prior. It had taken a long time to get used to, but she had learned to sleep whenever she had the chance. She could hear someone knocking on her door, but chose to ignore it and cuddled further under the duvet with a content sigh. Unfortunately, the knocking didn't stop just because she had ignored it.

"Lauren?" A voice called out, after another round of knocks. Lauren was too tired to hear-or care, for that matter-who it was and did her best to shut out the noise and dive back into slumber. The knocking ceased a moment later, and Lauren could feel herself drifting back to sleep. The quiet didn't last long, as the covers lifted and the bed dipped next to her. Two arms slipped around her midsection, and she could feel lips kissing up her shoulder, and across her neck before settling in her comfortably. "Morning Lauren." Tristan murmured against her neck, his voice husky with sleep still.

"Mmm, go 'way," she grumbled, clinging to what little sleep was still within her grasp. She heard Tristan chuckle softly in her ear.

"Can't do that," he replied. "Its time to get up."

"No it's not," she whined. "Its still sleepy time." He continued to chuckle at her response.

"You're adorable when you're half asleep and trying to argue." He brushed a stray piece of her dark hair away from her face. "But you do need to get up."

"Nu uh," she mumbled.

"Come on," Tristan said, lightly nudging her side, "Jason wants us up in time for his friend to get here, and there's breakfast waiting downstairs." At the mention of food Lauren popped one eye open and looked at him.

"What kind of breakfast?" She asked. Tristan smiled.

"I believe I heard talk of French toast, eggs, and bacon," he replied. Lauren considered that for a moment before furrowing her brow.

"Made by whom?" She suspiciously asked, which made Tristan laugh out loud.

"Declan," He replied. Lauren heaved a sigh and opened her eyes, deciding she could give up on trying to hang onto sleep.

"Oh all right then," she conceded. Breakfast was always a good enough reason to get out of bed, especially if it had been Declan's turn to whip up food for everyone. He was the best cook of the group, so any mealtime consisting of him unleashing his culinary prowess in the kitchen was well received. On the other hand, any that were put together by Kylie was the one most of the group conveniently had other plans for that meal.

"Good." Tristan smiled and kissed her cheek. It took Lauren a moment to push herself into a sitting position and throw the covers back. As she stepped out of bed, Tristan gave a low whistle.

"What?" She asked, turning around slightly. He gave her a lazy grin, his eyes darkening.

"Well, I'm thinking of changing our plans since you're dressed like that." He gestured to her racer back sports bra and silver panties with red polka dots.

Lauren rolled her eyes and snorted. "Well, you should've thought about that before you were so keen on getting me out of bed," she replied, sticking her tongue out at him. Tristan pushed himself up onto his elbows and grinned

"I'm sure I could charm you to come back to bed."

"Hmmm, I don't know," Lauren sarcastically pondered out loud as she grabbed a t-shirt from her dresser and slipped it on, "can you make a better offer than French toast, bacon, and eggs?" Tristan raised an eyebrow.

"Some would say that sex and cuddling is a much better offer." He replied casually.

"True," Lauren replied as she dug through her dresser to find a pair of shorts, "but sex is pretty much always readily available, the same cannot be said about breakfast, especially if Ryo and Davis get to it before everyone else," she chuckled. Giving a dramatic sigh, Tristan pushed himself out of the bed and strolled towards her, as she pulled her shorts on.

"I guess you're right." He smiled after a moment, leaning down for a kiss. Lauren cringed and stepped back.

"Morning breath." She pointed out, stepping around Tristan and moving to the bathroom. Tristan sighed as he watched her leave.

"Okay, sure," he muttered to himself, rubbing the back of his neck. This was just yet another one of Lauren's tactics of constantly keeping him at arms length. He was completely head over heels for her, yet he couldn't tell if she felt the same. Anytime he tried to be as affectionate as he like, or move their relationship beyond their current status of the casual date here or there, and the occasional physical intimate - though he wasn't sure "intimate" was a word he'd use to describe any aspect of their relationship - moment, Lauren always managed to side step it as if avoidance was an art form. And yet, Tristan persisted. He truly believed if he continued being there, continued showing how much he wanted to be with her, she'd one day want to take the next step to the relationship as well. A few minutes later, Lauren returned from brushing her teeth and the two made their way down to the kitchen to join the others for breakfast.

"Did you save us any?" Lauren asked as they reached the kitchen, and she slid into a free seat at the island next to Kylie. "Because if you guys didn't, I'll be super pissed." With a grin, Kylie passed her a plate and then the bowl of scrambled eggs.

"I purposely made sure that Declan cooked extra so that we could feed the homeless men in the corner," she commented, jutting her thumb towards Ryo and Davis who were filling their plates with bacon, "and the rest of the us normal citizens with not nearly as impressive metabolisms."

"You're just mad because they try to go for thirds and fourths whenever I cook, and not even a hazmat suit and a ten foot pole would make anyone want to came near anything you cook," Declan teased. On the other side of Kylie, Clara tried to hold back a snort and failed miserably. She did her best to hide it behind a cough and take a sip of coffee.

"My cooking isn't that bad," Kylie argued.

"She's right," Tristan commented, "it's worse," he chuckled. Kylie glowered at him and smacked his shoulder. Davis gave Kylie a sympathetic smile.

"Your cooking isn't _that_ bad…" He offered, and was cut off from saying more by a loud snort from Lauren.

"I'm sorry Ky, but does anyone else remember the microwave chicken incident, where I ended up in the hospital with severe food poisoning?" She took a sip of her juice and patted Kylie's hand gently. "Cooking isn't your best skill hun."

"It's not my fault you have an overly sensitive digestive system," Kylie argued, "that chicken was perfectly fine."

"Perfectly deadly is more like it," Clara murmured into her coffee cup as she took a sip, resulting in a glare from Kylie. "Well come on... the outside was practically burnt to a crisp and the inside was pink and oozing..."

"Yeah, if I recall, the only reason Lauren was crazy enough to actually eat is was because she didn't want to hurt your feelings," Ryo chuckled.

"That and I was starving. Nobody told me that Kylie had cooked dinner that night, and I'd spent all afternoon working on my bike. It wasn't like I had any warning that I was going to be poisoned for dinner." Lauren laughed. Kylie just glowered at her friends.

"I hate you all." She muttered, stabbing a piece of bacon violently.

"Aww," Declan laughed as he came up behind his sister and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, "alright guys, no more picking on Kylie,"

"Why not? It's fun," Tristan chuckled as he shoveled a fork full of eggs into his mouth.

"Hey, keep it up and I'll go on strike from kitchen duties for two weeks," Declan threatened, which certainly got everyone's attention.

"We'll be good," Davis quickly replied. Lauren laughed as she leaned over and kissed Declan's cheek.

"Thanks for making breakfast." She smiled before tucking back into her food. The group finished their meal in near silence, except for the occasional request to pass more of something. Once they had all finished, Ryo and Davis began collecting the plates and dishes to clean up. As if on cue, Jason strolled into the kitchen.

"Oh good, you guys are done." He commented, topping off his cup of coffee. "Lets head downstairs and get started." The others nodded and stood up. Just as the young adults moved to head downstairs to their base of operations, the doorbell rang out.

"Oh, that must be Tommy," Jason muttered to himself, perplexed. He gave a look to his watch, his brows furrowing slightly before he looked up. "Why don't you guys head down, I'll be there in a sec," he suggested. He didn't wait for their reply before he turned and headed to the front door. He looked out the window and, as he suspected, there stood Tommy. He chuckled to himself as he opened the door to greet his friend.

"Mr. Lateness himself is actually early for a change, I'm shocked," he commented. Tommy grinned as he stepped in and grabbed Jason's hand, pulling him in for a brotherly hug.

"Yeah well as a teacher, it's been drilled into me that if I'm late, I could loose my job. So it's become a thing now." He replied with a laugh. They clapped at each other's backs for a moment before pulling away. "This is a pretty sweet place you've got man." Tommy commented picking his bag up from where he'd dropped it. "I didn't realize cops made that much." Jason grinned as he recognized his friend's teasing tone.

"What can I say, I'm well connected," Jason replied back in kind as he stepped back to usher Tommy inside.

"Well, as long as those connections aren't some sort of mob thing, I guess that's okay," Tommy chuckled as Jason shut the door behind him. Jason opened his mouth to fire a joke right back at him, when he stopped short finally getting a good look at his old friend. Though Tommy had been grinning, and seemingly jovial, there was something off in his eyes. He remembered enough of their close friendship in high school to know it was the look Tommy wore when he was doing his best to bury a deep sense of dread.

"What happened?" Jason asked. Tommy sighed and dropped his grin, deciding there was no point continuing the pretense. He set his bag down on the floor by his feet.

"I think... whatever this thing is," Tommy began, highlighting just how clueless they all were to what or who this new threat was, "I think it took someone else."

"What? Who? When?" Jason asked, surprised. He ushered Tommy deeper into the house and towards the armchairs in the living room.

"Kira Ford, Conner's fiancé," Tommy answered as he and Jason sat down. He sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I don't know...I mean, maybe it's nothing... she's been upset ever since Conner's been missing, obviously, I don't know if she's just off clearing her head, or something..." Tommy's voice trailed off as he spoke, as if he was more so thinking out loud than speaking to Jason. "She was supposed to come by the base yesterday, I called everyone in to tell them about your phone call. She didn't show...didn't answer her phone, and there was no sign of her at her and Conner's apartment." Tommy sighed and rubbed a hand through his short hair. "I want to believe she's just... taking some time to herself with everything that's been going on, but," he paused a moment, as if preparing himself to face facts, "I can't honestly believe she'd just go off and not tell any of us, especially not with the chance that us former rangers are being picked off. She wouldn't worry all of us like that, not now. Not to mention she wouldn't make herself hard to reach in case there was any news on Conner." Jason nodded slowly, understanding his friends point. He opened his mouth to offer Tommy some sort of solace or words of encouragement, but was cut off by footsteps coming into the room.

"Jase?" Lauren asked as she entered the room, causing both men to look up at her. "Um, everything's set up downstairs, you coming?" She asked.

"Yeah, sure, we'll be right there," Jason replied. He cast a look over to Tommy, who was peering curiously at Lauren. He wasn't sure how to go about introducing Tommy. It was one of things he wished he had been able to hammer out in his head throughout the night.

"Hi," Tommy spoke, rising to his feet and extending a hand towards Lauren, "sorry for Jason's rudeness, I'm Tommy," he said. Lauren blinked and shifted her gaze towards him before politely extending her hand to his.

"Lauren," she replied.

"Lauren, it's great to meet you," Tommy sincerely replied as he shook her hand. She nodded slowly.

"Yeah, um, you too." Their hands dropped and she glanced back at Jason. "See you in a bit."

"Yeah," Jason nodded as Lauren left the room. Jason regarded Tommy carefully as his fellow former ranger turned back towards him with an unreadable expression and sat back down. "Uh...Tommy, that-" He began to speak, only for Tommy to hold up a hand to stop him.

"Hey, hey, there's no need to explain," Tommy replied.

"There isn't?" Jason asked.

"Yeah," Tommy said with a shrug and a small smile, "look," he continued in a soft tone, "it's been a few years since Trini..." Tommy let his voice trail off as he thought about his friend and Jason's fiancé. He cleared his throat and gave Jason a half smile, "look, we all knew there'd come a time you'd start seeing someone new." At those words, and at what Tommy was trying to imply, Jason's eyebrows shot up.

"Wait, what-"

"She seems nice," Tommy continued, "I mean, a little young... but who am I to judge?" Jason's mouth fumbled around the words, at a loss for how to say anything.

"I'm… We're not dating. Or anything like that. At all." He finally commented a moment later.

"Oh," Tommy said, an embarrassed blush coloring his cheeks. He gave a small chuckle. "Sorry, I saw a girl walking around in what looks like pajamas, I wasn't sure what to think."

"She lives here," Jason blurted out, which only resulted in a raised eyebrow from Tommy. "Not with me!" Jason quickly added. He took a deep breath and chose to go for the easiest explanation. "She's part of the ranger team... they all live here." Tommy nodded slowly in response.

"Makes sense… I guess." He replied.

"Yeah," Jason said, relieved that was cleared up. "Um, we should head downstairs so you can meet the others," he suggested.

* * *

Lauren descended into the basement, a weird expression on her face. As she rounded the corner near the computers, Declan caught her look. "What's with the face?" He asked as she stopped in front of the group.

"Uh, Jason's friend is here… And I just had the weirdest introduction to him." She mumbled in reply.

"What do you mean, weird?" Kylie asked from her spot at the row of computer screens.

"Was he mean or something?" Clara asked from one of the chairs in the corner. Lauren shook her head.

"No not mean or anything like that… Almost, I don't know, too eager and friendly. It was just really weird." She waved her hand as she sat down against the wall.

"Eager? What, you think he's got the hots for you?" Ryo asked with a laugh.

"He better not," Tristan commented as he sat beside Lauren and put an arm around her, "I'd hate to have to kick Jason's friend's ass." Lauren gave a humorless chuckle and leaned forward, subtly shrugging Tristan's arm away.

"Please," she said, rolling her eyes, "that's gross. The guy's old enough to be my dad or something." The door opening and closing at the top of the stairs ceased the conversation, and a moment later, Jason and Tommy entered the lair. As the group caught sight of the two Kylie leaned over to speak quietly to Clara.

"I don't know what Lauren was talking about old, the guy's pretty cute," she whispered. Clara quickly covered her mouth to silence the snort that tried to erupt at her friend's comment.

"Hey guys," Jason said as he and Tommy reached the center of the room, "I wanted to introduce you all to my friend Tommy."

"Hi," Tommy said, giving the group a small wave.

"Ok, I take that back, dude totally gives off old geek vibes," Kylie muttered to Clara. This time Clara didn't have time to quiet herself and the resulting snort and giggle hybrid was heard around the room, causing everyone to look towards her.

"Everything okay over there Clara?" Jason asked.

"Sorry, yeah, uh, was just... Um, yeah I'm okay," she quickly babbled, feeling flustered. Jason raised an eyebrow at her and Kylie, who had her lips pressed together in a thin line clearly holding in some laughter of her own, before shaking his head.

"Alright, well, moving on. Tommy, you've already met Lauren our silver ranger," Jason continued as he went around the room, "that's Tristan, our red ranger, Declan, our blue ranger, Davis, our green ranger, and Ryo our black ranger."

"And what about the giggle twins over there?" Tommy asked, jutting a thumb over towards where Kylie and Clara sat.

"We're ranger groupies," Kylie announced with a grin, while Clara merely groaned and covered her face with her hand.

"How is it that your brother was the only one to get the cooking gene, yet you both managed to get the smartass gene?" Clara asked her in an annoyed tone.

"It's a gift." Both Declan and Kylie chorused. Tommy glanced at Jason.

"I wasn't under the impression that you were also running a circus down here." Jason laughed loudly.

"Yeah, most days it's a full three-ringed one with this group."

"I can see that," Tommy replied.

"To answer your question, that's Kylie, our resident tech genius," Jason commented, to which Kylie gave an exaggerated prideful look, "and that's Clara."

"Our resident gofer," Ryo cracked.

"Keep it up, Ryo, and she'll 'gofer' your head," Davis pointed out. Lauren rolled her eyes.

"Okay Ryo, we get it. You have a crush on Clara. If you don't stop making your idiotic wise-cracks, which by the way annoy us just as much as they annoy her, I will break your leg." She snapped.

"I do not have a crush on Clara," Ryo stated, glaring at Lauren for even suggesting such a thing.

"You know," Kylie pondered out loud, "Ryo does have the mentality of a seven year old, it would make sense for him to do the whole schoolyard bullying the girl he looooooves, and then claiming he doesn't like her," she chuckled.

"Can we please change the subject? Please?" Clara sighed. "I will pay anyone to just get as far away from this subject as humanly possible."

"That's the best idea you've had today Clara." Jason agreed as he stepped in. "Kylie, I was wondering if you could help put together a system to focus in on ranger signatures through the morphing grid. Clara might be able to help you as well."

"Sure," Kylie nodded as she spun around in her chair to face the computer system and got to work. Jason glanced at Tristan, Declan and Ryo.

"Why don't you guys go work out with the new weapons for a bit, and figure out a way for us to conceal them to up the ante of a surprise attack. As for Davis and Lauren, I'd like you guys to head into the garage to work on the vehicles. I know you've been working on installing a new engine and talking about upgrading the comm links." He commented pointing to Lauren. "Tommy and I will be nearby, so just give us a holler and we'll be by later to help out." Each of the rangers voiced their agreement to Jason's orders as they filed out of the room, leaving Tommy, Jason, Kylie, and Clara left in the lair.

"Wow, impressive mentor work," Tommy chuckled, clapping his friend on the back. Jason laughed.

"Oh, what you thought you were the only one that had it in you?" He asked. Tommy seemed to think about that for a moment before nodding.

"Actually, yeah, I did," he joked. Jason rolled his eyes and punched his friend lightly in the shoulder.

"Come on, I want to show you the rest of the house."

"Lead the way," Tommy acquiesced as Jason headed out of the lair with Tommy at his heels.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Hello again lovelies! Thanks for the reviews, follows and favorites for the story, we appreciate it. So here's the next chapter. We're going to try and update as quickly as possible, but things are still up in the air for a few things for us. Please be patient :) Also, the title of the story comes from the song 'Maybe Tonight' by The Summer Set (if you were wondering). We've got some surprises coming up within the next few chapters, so keep reading, reviewing, following and hitting that favorite button! Love you bunches you adorable muffins! xx

* * *

It's just past 3am when the alarms start blasting through the house, and the sound of feet and shouting nearly drown it out. Kylie and Jason are two of the first people in the basement, which is surprising given that Jason had been in his own house. Tommy follows closely behind his friend, and Clara, Lauren, Declan and Davis are hot on his heels. The group clusters around the monitors, in various states of undress in a hurry to discover the issues. It's a few moments later before Tristan heads down the stairs, awkwardly pulling a hoodie over his naked upper body, and gives a sheepish grin to Lauren who just rolls her eyes. Kylie turns to begin to pull up the information on the computer when loud footsteps echo down the stairs and Ryo flies into the room and stops dead.

"Oh my god, could you put on some pants?" Declan sighs, rubbing his hands over his eyes tiredly. Ryo glances at him, and then down at his mostly naked body, wearing only a pair of boxers.

"Pants? Who can think of pants at a time like this?" He complains. Rolling her eyes, Lauren stalks over to the cupboard behind the computers and grabs a blanket.

"If the rest of the class can put on pants, you can at least wrap a blanket around yourself." She grumbles.

"Are we done playing fashion police?" Kylie inquired, "Can we get down to business?" The group quieted and huddled closer around the computers as she set to work. "I spent the afternoon and evening working on a tracking program, like you'd asked Jason. It's tapped in to track most of the rangers who've had connections to you in the past. That being said, there are some that I was able to leave out." After a few keystrokes, she points to some dots.

"The rangers on KO-35, and Mirinoi were left out because I couldn't see this guy doing any sort of intergalactic travel to kidnap them. And it's very similar with the rangers in the Animarium. It's a floating island in the sky, and again, I just can't see this guy doing that. So those three groups are safe, and it looks like someone named Eric Myers is with them as well." Kylie shrugged.

"So is Wes Collins," Tommy commented, he cast a look towards Jason, "after you called me, I did some calling of my own to check up on some of our friends. I ended up talking to Eric's wife, Taylor, before they left for the Animarium. She told me Wes wanted to stay, but she and Eric managed to convince him they needed to stick together... said something about using the godfather to their kids guilt trip," Tommy explained.

"Well, that's good," Jason nodded, "I was worried about those two," he commented, referring to Eric and Wes. Given that the rest of their team was off in the distant future, Jason had worried that the two lone Time Force rangers would be prime for the picking to this new evil.

"Well that accounts for the other signature there then." Kylie commented. "Anyway, the reason why the alarms were going off seems to be because this kidnapper has struck again. From the looks of things, it's the remainder of the former rangers that I was keeping track of. Their houses are illuminated still with residual energy and my own tracking tags, but the actual morphing grid signatures, are gone." She took a breath, running her hands over her face. "It's going to take me a while to attempt to track the movements and see if I can pinpoint a location on where this guy is keeping them."

"They're all gone?" Clara asked, shocked.

"Yeah, all of the former rangers, except for these two," Kylie replied, jutting her thumb towards Jason and Tommy, "and Dana, and her brother," Kylie added, a relieved sigh lacing her tone.

"Well, it's good to know the Aquabase seems to be safe," Jason commented, relieved he hadn't sent his friend off for her safety for nothing.

"Yeah, good idea sending Dana and the kids to stay with her dad," Davis replied. "And getting Tommy here," he added. Tommy merely nodded along numbly, his eyes fixed on Kylie's computer screen. His head was a whirlwind of thoughts. He was shocked the others had been taken in just one fell swoop so suddenly, he was worried about Trent and Ethan, who had been safe the last time he had seen them, and this sudden action just further his worry for the friends who had already been taken. And at the center of it all, one more person stuck out in his mind. A person he was shocked Jason hadn't mentioned at all since he'd arrived... no mention that she'd gone into hiding, or even-as Tommy had secretly hoped-that maybe she'd be arriving too for her safety.

"What about Kim?" Tommy suddenly said without thinking. He felt Jason freeze beside him and slowly turn to look at him.

"What?" He asked.

"Who?" Lauren asked.

"Kimberly, what about her?" Tommy asked Jason.

"Uh... I don't know man," Jason nervously replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "I guess...she was taken too...".

"... You guess?" Tommy asked incredulously, shocked that Jason would have such a seemingly flippant response. "What do you mean you guess?" He continued, a hard edge coming into his tone, "why weren't you looking out for her? You were so concerned with getting me here, what, you forgot about her?!"

"Tommy, man, let's talk about this later," Jason quickly pleaded, hoping to move off the topic of Kimberly for the time being. There was way too much wrapped up in that for Jason to even begin to know how to broach the subject. Tommy's eyes narrowed as he glared at Jason.

"She was taken too," Kylie quickly said before Tommy could continue his verbal attack on Jason. Jason blinked and cast a look over to Kylie. She gave him a slight tilt of the head, telling him she had him covered. Upon looking at the others, he could see most of the group either wearing similar expressions, or matching his - barely contained panic. Meanwhile, Lauren just stared at the two older men in confusion.

"Are we all missing something here?" She asked. "Who's Kimberly?"

"A friend," was all Jason said before focusing his attention back on Kylie.

"Anyway," Kylie continued, hoping to divert the conversation back to the previous topic. "It's going to take me a while to figure things out, so I guess it's Jason's call as to what we do next." Jason sighed tiredly and rubbed his hand over his face.

"For now, all I can say is we all need to be ready for whenever we know more and are prepared to act," Jason replied. He tried to sound official, like a mentor should, but he couldn't keep this feelings of helplessness from creeping in. "Its clear this guy isn't even trying to fly under the radar anymore. No more picking a few people here and there inconspicuously. This is reaching a head, and we need to be ready for that."

"Maybe he caught onto us...well, he is catching on," Clara chimed in with a suggestion. Jason nodded.

"That's likely," he sighed. "If he's known when and where to snatch people up, its clear he's been keeping an eye on them for who knows how long." Jason paused and rubbed his face again, "chances are the Wild Force rangers going into hiding on the Animarium, Dana going back to Mariner Bay, and even Tommy coming here... it's what made him go full speed and up his game."

"Well, that's comforting," Tommy sighed, hating himself for the thought that his coming to Fort Bragg put Ethan, Trent, and the others in danger. Jason reached over and put a hand on his friend's shoulder, doing his best to give him some form of comfort.

"For now, unless Kylie directly needs your help, I suggest we all give her the space and time she needs. I don't think it's a wise idea to leave the property unless you're in pairs, and even then you should stay vigilant about your surroundings. You're welcome to do whatever else you'd like tonight, but I for one, am going back to bed." Jason commented.

"You coming, bro?" He asked Tommy. Tommy cast a look towards him and shook his head.

"Nah, man," he said, "I think I just need some time... to process stuff, for a while," he admitted. Jason nodded in understanding.

"Alright, I'll leave some lights on in the house for when you're ready to head back to your room," he offered. After quick thanks from Tommy, Jason made his way out of the lair.

"Kyls, do you need anything?" Clara asked as the others murmured to themselves to decide whether to head back to sleep or work off some nervous energy that had begun to gather. Kylie sighed and gave a look towards the computers before glancing back at Clara.

"Coffee, and lots of it," she replied. Clara gave her a nod and left the lair, making her way to the kitchen. Lauren stepped away from the boys who were decided between putting movies on in the great room, or working out, and placed her hand on Kylie's shoulder.

"Do you want me to help with anything?" She offered softly. Kylie twisted her head and looked at her friend. She gave Lauren a smile and squeezed her hand.

"No, I'm good. Why don't you catch a few hours of sleep." The dark circles and heavy bags under Lauren's eyes were even more noticeable, and her normally warm, honey brown eyes looked nearly black. "If I need you, I'll come get you okay?"

"Promise?" Lauren asked, making sure Kylie wasn't simply placating her to get her to get some rest. Kylie smiled.

"Your door will be the first one I burst through the minute I find anything," she promised. "Just do me a favor...put a sock or something on the door, if in case Tristan decides to join you in bed," she chuckled. Lauren rolled her eyes.

"Funny," she said, giving her friend a mock glare. Kylie just smiled in response. "Alright, I'll see you later then." Moving back past the guys, Lauren quietly descended the stairs. Tristan watched her leave, momentarily considering the idea of following her, but ultimately deciding to let her have her space. He shifted his focus back to his friends as they continued to discuss their plans for the rest of the night. Upstairs, Lauren passed through the kitchen on her way up to her room.

"Hey, going back to sleep?" Clara asked as she poured water into the coffeemaker. Lauren nodded.

"Yeah, might as well, how about you?" She asked. Clara shrugged.

"I haven't decided," she replied, switching on the coffeemaker and letting it run. Within seconds the aroma of brewing coffee filled the room.

"I should go," Lauren laughed, "before I'm tempted to grab a cup... and I don't think that'll help with sleeping." Clara laughed as well.

"Um, no, no it would not. Good night," she smiled. Lauren repeated the sentiments as she left.

Once the coffee had finished brewing, Clara poured a cup and took it back down to Kylie.

"Oh thank you," came Kylie's enthusiastic comment as Clara handed the cup off to her. It was only then that she realized Tommy was still standing by, watching the screen. "Um, do you want a cup as well?" She asked. Tommy blinked a few times as Kylie's question tore him from his thoughts.

"Oh, uh, no thanks," he said, running a hand through his hair, "I think I'll just take a walk around the grounds, if that's okay," he murmured.

"Of course," Clara replied. "The light panel for the pool is near the storage shed, if you decide to take a swim or something," she offered.

"Thanks, but I think I just need to wander a bit," he replied. He gave the group a parting nod before leaving the room. The ranger men, Kylie, and Clara carefully watched him depart, the room engulfed in silence for a few minutes afterwards.

"Okay, am I the only one who found all of that really weird?" Declan asked as he moved to stand behind his sister.

"What?" Kylie asked.

"You know what," Declan replied with a roll of his eyes, "Tommy getting really intense about you know who. He looked like he was about to rip Jason's head off."

"Well, you heard Jason... she was their friend. I'd like to think if any of us were missing, we'd all react the same way," Clara shrugged.

"I don't know," Tristan commented, "Dec may have a point. It seemed more than that." Again, the room was engulfed in silence as the unspoken question hung in the air.

"No way," Ryo finally spoke up, "I mean... that'd just be... too weird."

"Is it?" Kylie asked, finally joining in on her brother's suspicions. "Of all of Jason's friends, he just happens to invite over the one guy who just happens to be asking about the queen," she added, her voice lowering into a whisper in case they weren't as alone as they all thought.

"But that's assuming what's happening with the other rangers has anything to do with her, or Lauren, or anything," Davis argued.

"What if it does?" Tristan asked. "I mean it wouldn't be a far fetched idea to assume with everything that happened on Elusia when we were kids. Maybe someone finally figured things out."

"Wouldn't Jason have told us if it was connected to Alsaia, or us?" Clara asked, still having a hard time jumping aboard everyone's suspicions.

"It's not like he's had a whole lot of time to talk to us alone," Tristan replied.

"Or if he even knows its connected," Davis suggested.

"And yet, we're brought back to why he brought Tommy here, of all people," Kylie argued.

"Hold up, so, we're actually suggesting this? We're actually saying we think Tommy is..." Ryo cleared his throat and lowered his voice. "That that's Lauren's dad?" He whispered.

"It makes sense," Declan shrugged. "We all know Lauren's half Elusian, and half human..." He stated, letting his voice trail off for a moment. "And here we have human guy getting rather interested about the queen's whereabouts. How is this such a leap?"

"Maybe because you're the same person who was so sure Jason was Lauren's father when we first met him," Ryo replied.

"Yeah, maybe Tommy is just a friend, just like Jason is," Clara agreed.

"... Okay, the day these two are actually on the same page, is a day we've all feared," Kylie muttered to herself. She sighed and shrugged. "Fine, maybe there's a chance we're all leaping to conclusions, but there's also a chance we're not wrong. And you know what that means."

"It means there's a chance Lauren's going to find out the truth," Davis said, finishing Kylie's thought. Simultaneously, everyone's gaze shifted to Clara.

"What?" She asked, perplexed.

"Well, you're the Cairystad, which means you're on Lauren duty," Tristan replied. Clara sighed and gave a look to him, Davis, Ryo and Declan.

"Yeah, well you're guards, so you're just as much on Lauren duty as I am," she countered. "If she finds out her whole life has been a lie, and we've been keeping it a secret all these years, the fall out is on all of us." The four were quiet as they considered her words.

"Man am I glad I have no part in this little cadre of yours," Kylie joked as she took a sip of her coffee. Clara shot her friend a look.

"And you think that you'd skirt by without Lauren going nuts on you too?" She asked. "We're all in this, and if she finds out… I just don't even want to think of how horrific it'll be."

"Oh yeah... point, set, match," Kylie muttered, realizing Clara was right. Yes, she wasn't a guard, or the Cairystad, in fact the only reason she had been sent to Earth with the others was due to her and Declan's parents. They begged the queen to not separate her from Declan, to keep the twins together and not let them grow up apart from one another, and she obliged them. But even still, Kylie had been a part of the secret, and been involved with hiding it from Lauren all these years. Something as minor as Kylie's lack of title would do little to save her from Lauren's feelings if and when she ever found out the truth.

"Okay, so, what do we do?" Declan asked. "Pray to god we're wrong about Tommy, and just play keep away with the truth if Lauren gets close to figuring things out?"

"Maybe the right thing to do first is see if we can talk to Jason and then go from there." Davis replied with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Well, since Jason already went back to bed, guess that'll have to wait," Tristan commented. Davis rolled his eyes.

"Thank you for that brilliant observation Tristan." He snapped. "Think you can prevent yourself from saying anything to Lauren if you're in a compromising position with her?" Tristan narrowed his eyes and glared daggers at Davis.

"I've never let any other parts of all this out before, this doesn't change anything," he replied behind clenched teeth.

"Good," Davis replied. Declan sighed and rolled his eyes.

"I think we need to forget idea of popping in a movie, clearly we're all tired and cranky," he said as he moved to stand by Davis and placed a hand on his boyfriend's shoulder.

"That's a great idea." Kylie grumbled, still plugging away on the computer. "Since you've all determined that you can be anywhere but here, I'd highly suggest you leave before I loose what little patience I have left." Without saying anything, Tristan turned on his heel and stalked from the room.

"Alright," Declan said, lightly nudging Davis, "come on, let's go back to bed." Davis gave him a small smile and nodded. He threw an arm around Declan as the two left together. Clara turned to Kylie.

"The coffeemaker's still on, and there's a full pot, if you need a refill," she commented.

"Awesome," Kylie nodded, taking a sip from the cup in her hand. Clara gave her a parting smile and headed out of the lair. Kylie turned to look towards Ryo.

"You're not heading off to sleep?" She asked. "Mind you, you touch my coffee supply, you die," she warned. Ryo chuckled.

"Noted," he replied before shrugging. "Nah, I think I'm going to do a few laps in the pool. Need to burn off some energy."

"Alright, have fun." She nodded, turning back to her computer. It was going to be a long night. The hours faded away in a blur for Kylie who worked well past the point of her eyes burning with exhaustion. Mid afternoon, she pressed the heels of her palms against her eyes and sighed deeply. "Jason, I'm sorry but I'm not coming up with anything on the search right now. It's still running and I'm trying to pinpoint this guy's location, but I keep coming up short." Kylie explained. Leaning over, Jason squeezed her shoulder gently.

"You're no good to us if you're asleep on your feet Kylie, go get some rest for a few hours and we'll try again later." He encouraged.

"Yippee," Kylie commented in a dry tone as she forced herself out of her chair. She groaned as her muscles, fatigued just like the rest of her, and sore from sitting for so many hours, screamed in protest.

"You okay?" Jason asked as Kylie extended her arms over her head to stretch her back and shoulders.

"No, but hopefully I will be after some shuteye," she replied. Moving towards the stairs, she gave a small wave. "Night." She called.

"Night," Jason replied with a slight chuckle, since it was nowhere near night.

* * *

Later that evening, after Kylie had caught a few hours of sleep and descended into the basement, she quickly shooed away help again, setting back to work. The group had wandered back upstairs into the great room and settled in for a movie marathon. Clara had excused herself for the evening, going to work on her pottery. Davis and Declan were lounging on the loveseat, Declan lying half on top of his boyfriend, his legs dangling over the armrest. Tristan and Lauren lay curled together on the far side of the room on the other couch. The tension between Tristan and Davis had been felt through the house since their exchanged words earlier in the day. Lying on his back with his head resting against the armrest, Tristan curled his arm around Lauren's midsection, while his other hand drew small circles against her hand. It was the closest she'd been to him in weeks, resting her head against his chest, her hand splashed over his stomach. Jason had decided to give the couples their space on the larger furniture and sat on one of the lone armchairs in the room. Tommy had opted to wander around the grounds again, wanting to familiarize himself with the large property, and Ryo had decided with everyone else otherwise occupied, he would use the empty pool to do a few more laps.

"Okay," Declan said as the end credits of the movie they were all watching rolled, "whose turn is it to pick the movie?" He asked.

"I think it's mine," Davis replied before making a face, "but I don't feel like getting up," he added. Declan chuckled and gently rubbed his arm.

"Who said you were allowed to get up, anyway?" He stated. Jason rolled his eyes with a laugh.

"I guess I'll get up," he stated, "since I'm not otherwise encumbered," he teased, looking at the two couples.

"Got any Disney movies down there?" Declan asked as Jason knelt in front of his expansive collection of movies." Lauren lifted her head off Tristan's chest and playfully glared at Declan.

"You just used your pick for the last movie, you don't get to choose another." She laughed. "Choose something that blows up or a horror movie." Lauren offered. Davis shook his head.

"Horror movies are you nuts?" He snorted. "I already have to sleep with this lunatic, I don't need him having nightmares on top of it!" Came his laugh as he pointed at his boyfriend.

"I vote horror movie!" Tristan chuckled as Declan flipped both Davis and Tristan off.

"Alright, majority wins, horror movie it is," he chuckled, as he picked out a disc and put it in the player. He settled back into his chair as the disc began to play.

Outside, Tommy moved around the grounds. He couldn't believe how large the property was. He had barely scratched the surface when he drove up to the main house the day before, or in his wandering around during the previous night, his thoughts consumed with his missing friends - especially Kimberly. Jason's small house - though calling it small wasn't quite accurate, even though it wasn't as large as where the others lived, it was still rather spacious with at least two more guest rooms in addition to the room Tommy was staying in - was about a quarter mile to the left of the main house. Behind the two living areas, there was sprawling space made up another smaller guest house, the pool, the storage shed not too far from the pool, and a small almost cottage-like building. As he wandered around, Tommy heard Ryo splashing around as he did laps in the swimming pool, the flood lights near the edge giving the younger man ample illumination as he exercised. Tommy approached the small guesthouse first, but saw that it was empty and dark. He approached the cottage some ways away, curious of the line shining from the window and parted door. As he got closer he saw it was a one-room space filled with an array of art supplies, tools, and pieces on shelves and tables along the walls. In the corner of the room there was a large contraption that looked like some sort of oven. In the center there was a pottery wheel with splotches of dry and wet clay spilled onto the surface. Tommy had visited Trent's house enough times to see he had come across a makeshift art studio.

As he reached the partially open door he found Clara sitting at a long table in the room, carefully painting a clay vase. She wore an apron over her clothes, which like the pottery wheel, was covered in splotches of clay and some paint. Clara looked up, hearing the footsteps outside the door, surprised to see Tommy there.

"Hi," she greeted.

"Sorry, didn't mean to sneak up on you, was just checking this whole place out," he apologized, pushing the door open a bit more to step into the doorway. Clara smiled and shook her head.

"No problem," she replied. "You can come in if you want," she shrugged. Tommy took her invitation and stepped deeper into the studio, taking everything in.

"This is an impressive space," he commented.

"Thanks," Clara replied, "it was originally the storage shed but Jason let me convert it to a studio once we all moved in here, and had the smaller shed built by the pool," she commented.

"Well, that was great of him," Tommy nodded as he looked over Clara's work lined up on some of the shelves and wall. There were a few other vases, bowls, some paintings and drawings, and even some small sculptures. "Wow," he commented. "Is there any kind of art you don't do?" He chuckled. Clara laughed and shrugged.

"I don't think so," she jokingly replied. Tommy laughed and continued looking at the different pieces-some completed, and some still in progress-littered all over the space. As he looked at the drawings, he couldn't help think about Trent, a worry for his friends making the levity leave his mind. He cleared his throat, as if trying to keep himself from sinking too deep into his worry.

"You know, if you ever thought about going to art school, Trent teaches at the UC Reefside art institute, I'm sure he can put in a good word for you," he commented. Clara shook her head.

"I don't think I could ever leave here," she said without thinking. She paused at Tommy's inquisitive look. "Oh, um, because I'm so close to Davis and the rest of my family," she quickly added. "I think I'd be too homesick anywhere else," she chuckled. Tommy gave a small laugh and nodded.

"I understand," he said. Clara peered at him for a moment, sensing the worrying he must be feeling as he mentioned Trent.

"But since he's a professor, maybe I can get his thoughts on some of my work," she stated, "When we find them. Which we will," she said with a smile, hoping to lift Tommy's spirits.

"I bet he'd really like that." He agreed with a smile. "Trent's a good guy and extremely talented. He drew his own comics for a while, and still does a bunch of freelance work on top of working at the University."

"Wow, impressive," Clara smiled. Tommy nodded.

"Yeah," he said, deep in thought. Clara opened her mouth to give him some more reassurance, only to notice Ryo approach the doorway, a t-shirt over his swim shorts, and a towel draped over his shoulders as he used one end to ruffle and dry his dripping hair.

"Can I help you?" She asked. Of the entire group, Ryo was the only one she tended not to invite into her workspace.

"Sorry, heard voices, just wanted to make sure everything was okay," Ryo replied. Tommy shifted his gaze between the two of them. He had gotten that the two weren't exactly best friends, but for some reason the tension felt even thicker at the moment. He decided it was best not to get too involved, especially since he barely knew either of them.

"I'm fine," Clara stated. Raising an eyebrow, she crossed her arms. "Anything else?"

"I should go," Tommy stated. He didn't know why, but he could feel Ryo giving him a look that demanded he leave. "I don't want Jason to think I got lost or anything," he chuckled. Ryo stepped aside to let Tommy step out of the studio and watched him leave before he stepped inside, shutting the door behind him.

"Um, I don't recall inviting you in," Clara stated. Ryo rolled his eyes.

"Oh unbunch your panties, will you?" He asked. Clara's eyebrows rose, as her cheeks grew flush with anger.

"You will not comment on my panties or whatever state they're in," she hissed.

"Oh please, like I'd care about your panties or anything else," Ryo replied with an eye roll. "Look, I just wanted to make sure you weren't talking to him about anything you shouldn't be," he stated. Now it was Clara's turn to roll her eyes.

"Right, because I'd just blab everything - who we really are, where we're all from, and most importantly, that Lauren may or may not be his daughter at the drop of a hat," she sneered. "You're an idiot if you think I'd actually do that."

"I just wanted to be sure," Ryo replied, "with everything else going on, we don't need to deal with all the drama that could come on with all that."

"Ryo, just because I'm not a ranger, doesn't mean I don't understand the severity of what's going on," Clara said.

"I'm not saying that you don't understand the severi –".

"Really?" She glared at him, tossing her brush down, clearly finished for the evening with her artistic mood ruined. "Because that is exactly what it sounds like. Look, I get that you probably think I'm a liability, but I am also Lauren's Cairystad, meaning that I'm just as much in this as you are." Pulling her apron off, she tossed it on the desk behind her work station. "If you'll excuse me, this liability is going to bed." She stalked forward, slamming her shoulder into his as she walked out of the building.

"Shut the light off when you leave," she tossed over her shoulder as she left, in a tone that made it clear she wanted him to leave her studio right away. Ryo sighed and quickly located the switch located by the doorway and shut it off. He pulled the door shut as he backed out of the studio and jogged after her.

"Clara," Ryo called as he tried to catch up to her as she stormed towards the house. "Stop," he demanded as he finally reached her. He quickly grabbed her elbow and pulled her to a stop. Clara stumbled back against him and quickly stood up straight and tried to wrench her arm free of him, but Ryo kept his grip.

"Leave me alone," she demanded.

"Will you stop being a bitch for five seconds?" Ryo hissed. Clara tightened her jaw and glared at him, Ryo returned the glare for a moment before softening his gaze. He sighed and loosened his grip on her arm. "Look," he gently began, "I didn't say you're a liability. Of course you're not," he said.

"Okay, fine, what are you saying?" She asked, pulling her arm back and crossing both arms over her chest. Ryo paused a moment and sighed.

"All I mean is... we've all been keeping this from Lauren for a long time... but it's always been pretty easy."

"It has never been easy," Clara argued. "Lauren's my friend. Lying to her has never been easy. But I've done it anyway, because it was what had to be done."

"Okay, okay, maybe easy wasn't the right word," Ryo conceded. "I just mean that, with Tommy here, the possibility that he's Lauren's birth dad, and with whatever's going on more than likely being connected to her and the queen... it's not going to be easy... or whatever you want to call it... anymore."

"Really? My god Ryo you're brilliant. I honestly never would have imagined that these added complications would make keeping this secret any easier." She snapped.

"Oh my god!" Ryo exclaimed in frustration, raking his hands through his hair. "I'm trying to apologize and explain what I was trying to say, and even then you can't stop being a cun-" He cut himself off and pressed his lips shut to stop himself from saying anything else.

"A what?" Clara demanded, narrowing her eyes into thin angry slits.

"Forget it," he said, shaking his head. "All I mean is, would it kill you to actually tone down the hostility towards me, for once?"

"I don't know, but I figure it's not worth the risk to try," Clara said with a fake smile.

"Gee, thanks. It's so nice to know I'm not worth even a little civility," he said. He sighed and gave her a resigned look. "What did I do?" He asked. Clara blinked, surprised by his question.

"What?" She asked.

"What did I do? You've acted like I'm some annoyance since high school. So, what did I do?" He asked. Clara shrugged dismissively.

"Ryo, you act like we were bestest buddies. If I recall, there's never been a time when we didn't hassle each other."

"No," Ryo said, shaking his head, "it was different when we were kids. Sure, we annoyed each other, and kidded around. But then you just suddenly took it further. I let it go all these years because... Well, I don't even know why, but I did. But now, now I'm asking. What the hell did I do to make you hate me?"

"I don't..." Clara began before shaking her head. "I don't know, maybe just something about your personality finally grated on my last nerve," she said with another shrug. He fixed her with an odd look for a moment before shaking his head slowly.

"Alright Clara, whatever you say." Ryo stated, resigning himself to the fact that she wouldn't be telling him the truth. "I'm going to bed, have a good night." He squeezed her shoulder softly and slowly headed back towards the house. Clara sighed and watched him walk away. She decided it would be best to keep her distance, not wanting to continue their discussion any further. She watched him reach the back sliding glass door and slip inside the kitchen. She gave it another few minutes before she started to walk back to the house herself.


End file.
